Toe Blake
Canadian | birth_date = | birth_place = Sudbury, Ontario | death_date = | death_place = Montreal, Quebec | career_start = 1934 | career_end = 1948 | draft = | draft_year = | draft_team = | halloffame = 1966 }} Hector "Toe" Blake, Order of Canada (August 21, 1912 – May 17, 1995) was a Canadian player and coach in the National Hockey League (NHL). Nickname His nickname came out of his childhood for his younger sister was unable to pronounce his name. When she said it, it often sounded like Hec-''toe'', hence Toe as his nickname which later replaced the nickname he had been given as a scorer, the Old Lamplighter, because he often activated the light behind the goal. Biography Born in what is now the ghost town of Victoria Mines (now part of Sudbury), Ontario, he was raised playing outdoor hockey in the town of Coniston near the city of Sudbury, Ontario. Blake played junior and senior hockey in the Sudbury area and was part of the 1932 Memorial Cup champions, the Sudbury Cub Wolves. He played for the Hamilton Tigers of the Ontario Hockey Association before joining the NHL club with which he won his first Stanley Cup, the Montreal Maroons, in 1935. He then joined the Montreal Canadiens when the Maroons folded and played with them until his retirement in 1948. For the last eight seasons, he was team captain, and led the Canadiens to Stanley Cups in 1944 and 1946. He won the Art Ross Trophy and the Hart Trophy in 1938-39 despite the Canadiens' terrible records in the late 1930s and early 1940s. He was the only bright spot on the team. Starting in 1943-44, he was part of a trio called the "Punch Line," which featured Elmer Lach and Maurice Richard. He won the Lady Byng Trophy in 1945-46. A little after January 11, 1948, he suffered a double fracture of his ankle, ending his NHL career. After retiring from the Canadiens he resided permanently in Montreal, raising his children and subsequently where his grand children were raised. The "Toe" Blake Tavern, which he owned, became a successful watering hole in Montreal. He coached several minor league teams in the Canadiens' system. In 1947-48 he led the Houston Huskies to the United States Hockey League championship. In 1950-51 he coached the Valleyfield Braves to the Alexander Cup. He also coached the American Hockey League's Buffalo Bisons. After eight years coaching in the minors, he was named head coach of the Canadiens in 1955, replacing Dick Irvin. Blake was fluent in French (his mother was a Franco-Ontarian), and Canadiens management also felt that Blake was best-suited to control Richard's explosive temper (which had led to a suspension the past spring). In his first five years as Canadiens' coach, the team won the Stanley Cup each year, He also won the Stanley Cup in 1964-65, 1965–66, and 1967-68. His eight Stanley Cup wins are the most for any Canadiens' coach and second in the National Hockey League. He is still the winningest coach in Canadiens' history. Blake turned down Jacques Plante's request to wear a mask during games for fear that it would impair his vision. However, after a shot broke Plante's nose on November 2, 1959; Blake finally relented. Blake was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966. In the end, it was Alzheimer's Disease, which Blake had for more than eight years, that ended his life. Toe Blake died of pneumonia, typical of Alzheimer's patients, on May 17, 1995, at the age of 82. Career statistics Regular Season Season Team Lge GP G A Pts PIM 1934-35 Montreal Maroons NHL 8 0 0 0 0 1935-36 Montreal Canadiens NHL 11 1 2 3 28 1936-37 Montreal Canadiens NHL 43 10 12 22 12 1937-38 Montreal Canadiens NHL 43 17 16 33 33 1938-39 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 24 23 47 10 1939-40 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 17 19 36 48 1940-41 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 12 20 32 49 1941-42 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 17 28 45 19 1942-43 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 23 36 59 26 1943-44 Montreal Canadiens NHL 41 26 33 59 10 1944-45 Montreal Canadiens NHL 49 29 38 67 25 1945-46 Montreal Canadiens NHL 50 29 21 50 2 1946-47 Montreal Canadiens NHL 60 21 29 50 6 1947-48 Montreal Canadiens NHL 32 9 15 24 4 NHL Totals 577 235 292 527 493 Awards *Stanley Cup champions 1935 (with Montreal Maroons as a player) *Stanley Cup champions 1944, 1946 (with Montreal Canadiens as a Player) *Stanley Cup champions 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1968 (Head Coach of Montreal Canadiens) *Hart Trophy 1939 *Scoring Leader 1939 *Lady Byng Trophy 1946 *NHL First Team All-Star 1939, 1940, 1945 *NHL Second Team All-Star 1946 Category:Born in 1912 Category:Dead in 1995 Category:Buffalo Bisons players Category:Canada's Sports Hall of Fame inductees Category:Hart Trophy winners Category:Hockey Hall of Fame Category:Lady Byng winners Category:Montreal Canadiens coaches Category:Montreal Canadiens players Category:Montreal Maroons players Category:Art Ross Trophy winners Category:Providence Reds players Category:Stanley Cup champions Category:Memorial Cup winners Category:NHL All-Stars Category:Canadian ice hockey players Category:Retired in 1951 Category:Sudbury Cub Wolves alumni Category:Valleyfield Braves players Category:Buffalo Bisons players Category:Canadian ice hockey coaches Category:Houston Huskies coaches Category:Valleyfield Braves coaches Category:Buffalo Bisons coaches